The Mediating Effects of Job Burnout for the Relationships Between Workplace Ostracism and Task Performance and Helping Behavior

Workplace ostracism has become a concern for organizations as studies have found it to result in various negative organizational outcomes. Research has found workplace ostracism to be directly associated with organizational outcomes yet the underlying mechanisms that link workplace ostracism and behavioral outcomes need to be further examined in order to comprehensively understand the effects of workplace ostracism. Thus, this study explored the mediating effects of job burnout (exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy) for the relationships between workplace ostracism and task performance and helping behavior. Data were collected using a three wave self-reported questionnaire and sampled 263 full-time employees in South Korea. The study found exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy to mediate the relationships between workplace ostracism and task performance while cynicism and inefficacy mediated the relationship between workplace ostracism and helping behavior.